Built environments, social environments, and activity-travel behavior: A case study of Hong Kong

The influence of individuals' living environment such as the built environment on their activity-travel behavior has been an important topic in activity-travel behavior research. Not much research attention has been paid to the social aspect of the living environment, which may impact activity-travel decision making or be an important mediating factor for the built environment. This paper makes an attempt to fill the gap by simultaneously considering the built and social environment in studying their impacts on activity-travel behavior. Using the sample data from an activity-travel diary survey conducted in Hong Kong in 2010, this study employs a structural equations model to investigate the effects of built and social environments on social contacts and activity-travel behavior in time allocation between in-home and out-of-home activities, trip generation and travel time. The study reveals that people living in public and private housing in Hong Kong have significantly different built and social environments, and that built environments significantly determine social environments and exert significant influences on social contacts and activity-travel behavior.